


The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

by Cuffs_Alister



Series: Earth 127 [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, NCT (Band)
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Party, Spoilers for Round of Robins, holiday feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:55:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21867874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cuffs_Alister/pseuds/Cuffs_Alister
Summary: Mr. Wayne hosts an outdoor fundraising gala for the arts.  Rich people are weird, and most of the Round of Robins can't deal with it.On the other side of town, a figure slips in windows to leave treats for children.  He's skinnier than they expect from Nicholas, but then, he's not really expected at all.
Series: Earth 127 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1575403
Kudos: 11





	The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

**Rooftop: Gotham’s Lower Wards, Dec. 24th**

Jason pulled his hat lower over his ears. He missed the heating pads in his winter helmet, but for the kids, he’d just have to put up with the cold. He still wore the mask though. No one knew Jason Todd was alive, and that was kind of useful, actually. 

Of course, the kids would know he was the Red Hood. Most of them had seen him without the helmet already. To them though, he wasn’t a crime lord, or an outlaw. No, to the children of Gotham’s lower wards, he was St. Nicholas himself. 

Some of them called him Mr. Nicholas on other nights of the year too. But this wasn’t just any day of the year. Jason was out in his full Nicholas gear because it was Christmas Eve. He spread joy this one night of the year. Sure, it helped him gain the trust of the children of Gotham, but more than that, they deserved a little bit of happiness. He wanted to give them something to look forward to -- something he never had. He hadn’t even really done Christmas with Bruce. 

Banishing the thought and grabbing his bag of goodies, Jason got ready to rappel down to the window of the first foster family on his list. 

**City Park: Uptown Gotham, Dec. 24th**

Rich people had no common sense. Jeno knew that, but he didn’t expect to be dragged along on this particular nonsensical adventure. It was Christmas Eve, snowing. He might have called it romantic if he wasn’t expected to be out in this weather attending a Wayne Enterprises gala in sub-20 temperatures. Seriously, it was too cold for this.

Apparently it was an excuse to wear fur lined clothes -- something neither Jeno, nor Jaemin, had even the means to get. (Of course, they could have asked Mr. Wayne, but things were still awkward around his civilian persona.) 

Not to mention, the only people he knew in attendance were the Waynes themselves, and half of them he wasn’t supposed to know. Well, them and Haechan and Chenle. The other kids from their school were all members of Jisung’s dance crew. 

**Wayne Manor, Dec. 17th**

“No, Bruce. We don’t need a benefit to support the crew,” Jisung groaned. 

“The school is defunding you.” Bruce sat on the couch. Jisung appreciated his efforts in being less… business like around him, but he still didn’t seem to get the whole emotional vulnerability and warmth thing. “And I know this is important to you. Let me help.”

“Yeah, they’re important to me, and we formed a community of outsiders within the school, but we’re still all rich kids. If we need money for something, any of us can just ask our parents.” They went to private school. Money wasn’t usually a problem.

Bruce sighed. “At least invite them then. We’ll put the money towards another charity.”

“Alright,” Jisung said as he sat down. “Fair warning though, I think a lot of them are going home for Christmas. It might be just me, Chenle, and Haechan.”

It was not just Jisung, Chenle, and Haechan.

**City Park, Dec. 24th**

Jaemin had to laugh a little bit. Jisung may have been a great dancer, but his coordination otherwise left much to be desired. This being said, he was currently on the ice, in a pod of his dance crew members. One of the kids in his class, Yangyang, was excitedly giving him pointers while back skating. 

Off to the side, Mr. Wayne was watching him too. Jaemin wasn’t sure he’d ever seen the man that genuinely happy. He sipped his cocoa and decided he should probably find Jeno.

He finally found his friend hiding behind a snow drift, outside the lights of the gala. 

“You know,” Jaemin said, “it’s probably warmer by the fire.”

Jeno pulled Jaemin down to sit next to him. “Yeah, but Mr. Wayne has been following me with a box for half the party.”

A box? “You mean like a Christmas present? Why are you avoiding him then?”

Jeno gave Jaemin a blank look. “I don’t need any presents. Least of all from the man who is paying my tuition for school and for my fencing coach and funding my night job. That’s enough. That’s more than enough.”

“He’s not going to let up, you know. If you’re not careful he’s going to show up in front of the class, or the fencing team, or something.”

Jeno sighed. “You know, you’re probably right,” he grumbled. 

Jaemin stood up and held a hand out. “Shall we find him and get this over with?” 

“Let's.”

**Chimney: Gotham’s Lower Wards, Dec. 24th**

Jason was really regretting the decision to go full Santa on this house. He really should have known better. Grown men didn’t fit in chimneys. But he hadn’t been thinking about Dickens when he decided that was how he was going to get into this house. 

He was going to smell like creosote too. How unpleasant.

Eventually, he managed to squeeze through the old fireplace. He dusted himself off before stepping out of the grate onto a dinged up hardwood floor. At least he didn’t have to worry about tracking soot on a white carpet or something. 

When he looked up, there was a small child, no taller than his hip, gaping up at him. It wasn’t a kid he recognized. He motioned for the child to be quiet.

“Are you Santa?” the kid asked. “Mrs. Foster says he’s a fat man, but you just came down the chimney.”

Jason smiled softly. “The other kids call me St. Nicholas, or St. Nick.”

The kid looked a bit sheepish. “Are you gonna give me coal? Mrs. Foster says I’m probably on the naughty list and am only gonna get coal this year.”

“Of course not! In fact, I have something special for you right here.” Jason reached into his bag. He was going to have to look into this “Mrs. Foster.” 

Out of his bag, Jason pulled a pack of colored pencils and a sketch pad. “I hope you like drawing, kid.”

The kid’s eyes widened at the art supplies. “Yes, Mr. Nicholas, sir. I love drawing.” His face dropped then. “Mrs. Foster says it’s friv’lous though. She says I should focus on my Math and Science.”

Who did this woman think she was? “Hey, let me let you in on a little secret. Right this moment, one of the richest men in the country is hosting a party to benefit art programs all over the city. His kids include a circus acrobat and a street dancer. Art is perfectly worthwhile.”

The kid looked like he was about to cry. Jason knelt down in front of him, and soon had him sniffling into his jacket. “Th- _sniff_ \- thank you Mr. Nicholas.”

“It’s no problem kid. Now, are you going to be disappointed if I leave by window?” Jason asked, patting the kid’s hair.

The kid looked up and smiled wetly at him. “Only if you don’t have a cookie first.”

Jason stifled a laugh. “Sure kid,” he said and tousled the kid’s hair.

**City Park, Dec. 24th**

Jisung was having a bad time. Sure, his crew surrounded him, but Yangyang was skating circles around him while Jisung himself was constantly on the verge of killing someone with a skate. To top it off, Jeno had finally come out from his hiding place only to be presented with a box with the Nike logo on it. 

When Jeno opened the box, he almost fell over. Jisung cringed from his place on the ice. He knew what was in the box. 

Bruce had gotten Jeno a pair of the Nike Air Ballestras -- fencing shoes that went for $185.00 a pair. According to Jeno, that was more than one of his blades. Jisung had told Bruce not to do it, that Jeno wasn’t keen on receiving gifts like that, but Bruce had done it anyway, and now everyone who knew both of them was embarrassed (or at least, Jisung was pretty sure that was the case. If not, he was embarrassed enough for everyone there). 

“Alright! I think I need some hot chocolate. It’s freezing out here,” Jisung said, determined to get off the ice.

“I will go with you,” Chenle offered. 

Jisung accepted as far as the edge of the ice, but when Chenle moved to follow him off, he said, “I need you to cover for me. I’m gonna go patrol for a bit.” 

When Chenle gave him a worried look, he added, “I can’t deal with this anymore. Bruce is an embarrassment.”

“Ah. I can cover for you,” Chenle said, nodding.

And with that, Jisung snuck away. 

***

Bruce smiled as he watched Jisung slip behind the hot chocolate station. The other boys would be disappointed, but he couldn’t blame him, really. He shivered a bit. Whatever had possessed him to host this gala outside, he was regretting it now. The temperature was dropping quickly, and even in full winter gear, he could feel the goosebumps rising on his arms. 

The other attendees seemed to be enjoying themselves though. Jeno, Jaemin, and Haechan, the most recent additions to his family, had congregated at the fire. Most of Jisung’s friends from school seemed content to take advantage of the skating rink set up. One child in particular -- the one with the gap-toothed smile -- seemed to be having the time of his life. Tim was chatting up the Donoghue family while their children slid down the sledding hill Dick had insisted on. 

Dick himself was at the top of the hill, spraying sleds with non-stick cooking spray. He insisted it made them go faster. Bruce was fairly sure that was an old wives’ tale, but he wasn’t about to rain on Dick’s parade. It was, after all, Christmas Eve.

_I would have loved to do this with you,_ Bruce thought. He knew he should take comfort in his family as it existed. He had more children than he knew what to do with, and a wonderful father figure in Alfred. Still, he couldn’t help but wish They could have met their grandchildren. They would have loved each and every one of them, he was sure.

“Are you ok, Mister?” In front of him was a child, around Tim’s age. Her face was red with the cold. 

“Oh don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine,” Bruce assured her. 

“You know, the Solstice is supposed to mark the return of light to the world,” She responded. 

His confusion at the statement must have shown on his face, because the girl continued. “This is no time to be sad. It’s a time of new beginnings.”

Ah. That made sense now. “I’m not sad--”

“Minhee. I’m here with my brother.”

“Minhee. I’m just thinking about the state of things.” It’s true. He was happy with his family now. They seemed to think he was constantly disappointed in them, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.

“Yeah, well maybe it’s just your eyes. You have sad eyes.” Minhee nodded as she spoke.

Bruce laughed. “Perhaps. I’ll try to look less sad. Would that help?”

“No. You can’t just _look_ less sad. You need to _be_ less sad.” Minhee frowned at him. Bruce was almost certain he knew who her brother was in that moment.

Just to be sure, he asked, “Are you Haechan’s sister?”

She responded, still frowning, “Yeah. How do you know Haechan? He doesn’t really talk to rich people.”

“Oh, I’m Jisung’s dad. Call me Bruce.” Bruce smiled, but it quickly turned into a wince when Minhee scowled at him. 

“Mr. Wayne, you’d better treat your kids right. And I don’t just mean the ones you’ve adopted.” 

Ah, so she knew. Bruce supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised. They were twins, after all. He couldn’t expect Haechan to keep secrets from her. 

“I assure you, Ms. Lee, I will not be stuck in the past,” he said, before whispering conspiratorially, “And don’t tell any of them, but I’m actually proud of them all.”

Of course, he fully expected that to make it to Haechan. Whether it spread beyond the two of them though, was up in the air. 

**Robin Patrol Route: Gotham’s Lower Wards, Dec. 24th**

There was someone on the rooftop ahead of Jisung. He really hoped it wasn’t a supervillain, moreso for the loaf of bread stuffed in the backpack he was carrying. He’d already missed St. Lucia’s day with Freja. He couldn’t miss Christmas Eve with the kids too.

Before he could plot a new route to Melisandra’s, the figure was moving toward him. Jisung pulled out a birdarang, just in case. 

When the figure moved into the light of his rooftop, Jisung nearly fell over laughing. In front of him was none other than Jason Todd, wearing a Santa hat, and covered head to toe in soot. Jason was the last person he expected to be out playing Santa. 

“So Santa Claus came early this year?” Jisung managed through his laughter.

“It’s St. Nick. And just a bit. Most of the kids are in bed already, and I expect Biz is going to want to open presents at some awful hour of the morning.” 

Jisung had to admit that made sense. It still didn’t explain why Jason was playing St. Nick tonight though. 

“What about you? Robin going to sneak down the chimney to deliver presents to underprivileged children?” Jason’s tone was at least half wry amusement. 

“Kinda, actually. There’s a little girl at my old group home who’s expecting a visit from Tompte.” Jisung had been playing Tompte for years. He was pretty sure Freja knew it was him by now, but as long as she wanted to play along, Jisung had no plans of stopping. 

Now Jason was laughing. He had no right. Not only was he pretending to be St. Nicholas, but judging from the soot, he had at least tried to actually fit himself down a chimney. 

“You’re supposed to be … a gnome? Little Bird, I’m pretty sure even you’re too big for that.” Jason’s shoulders were still shaking. “Why don’t we do this together. Same idea, right?”

Jisung didn’t really have to give it any thought. He remembered the other kids’ stories about the skinny Mr. Nicholas in a mask. Jason must have been doing this for a while.

“Sure,” he agreed. “I’m not going down any chimneys though.”

Jason laughed again. “Don’t worry. I won’t be trying that again any time soon.”

**Wayne Manor, Dec. 25th**

Jisung sat in the kitchen with a cup of coffee warming his hands. He’d just finished cleaning up. He expected to be found by Alfred, probably with a reprimand about getting enough sleep on his lips.

He did not expect to be found by Tim. Yet, Tim was the first person to come down. 

“What are you doing up?” Tim asked, pouring himself a cup of coffee. 

“I had stuff to do this morning.” It was the truth. That stuff was in the oven, almost ready to come out. Jisung was surprised that Tim couldn’t smell it.

“Did you actually sleep at all?” That was rich, coming from him.

“Yes. Yes I did. Showered too,” Jisung said with a pointed look at Tim’s hair. It was hanging in greasy mats. 

“I’ll shower after coffee.”

“Promise?”

“Ji. I’m going to clean up.”

Jisung gave him the most incredulous look he could muster. “I’m not going to give you breakfast until you do.”

Tim peered at him over his coffee. “Alfred usually makes breakfast on Christmas morning, special.”

“Well, I decided to give him a break this year.” Jisung shrugged. “What’s got you up so early anyway? Did you go to sleep at all?”

Tim sighed. “Yeah, I went to sleep. I kept waking up though. Eventually decided to just stay awake.”

Oh. That made a lot of sense, actually. Tim was always slightly rumpled, and usually had dark circles under his eyes. Jisung had always assumed he just pulled too many all nighters. 

The boys sat in silence, sipping their coffee. The smell of cardamom and cinnamon spread through the room. Tim made a second pot of coffee while Jisung took a sweet smelling braided loaf of bread out of the oven. 

“You know, I was serious,” Jisung said.

“I’m headed out to shower now. Don’t worry about it.”

“Not that.” 

Tim stopped as he put his coffee mug in the sink.

Jisung continued. “It scares me -- that Jason is probably the most stable member of the family. It scares me that I think that’s starting to include me.”

“Ji,” Tim said as he moved to sit down at the counter. “It does get to you, constantly living like someone is going to find out. Most of us got into the superhero gig for our own satisfaction. You though, you got into it for your friend. To _actually_ help someone. Yeah the secret identity thing gets to you, but I at least find that helping people makes it all worth it.”

Before Jisung could respond, Cass came through the doorway to the kitchen. 

“Coffee?” she asked, voice soft.

“I may need to make another pot. I fear, good sister, that Timothy may have drunk it all,” Jisung answered, smirking.

Tim got up to go, shrugging off Jisung’s teasing. Jisung moved to make coffee as Cass cut into the loaf of bread.

Both Tim and Jisung looked up when Cass announced, “Not done.” Sure enough, the bread was still dough in the middle, unfit for human consumption. 

It looked like Alfred was going to be making breakfast after all.


End file.
